Italian words in English
(Italian developed from Latin and the following words came into English from Italian; most of which were derived from Latin)
stucco
timpani
torso
trampoline
trombone
umbrella
vendetta
viola
violin
violin cello
virtuoso
vista
volcano
zany (ZAY nee) (adjective), zanier, zaniest
1. Comical, outlandishly extravagant: Many people prefer zany comedy to sophisticated humor.
2. Nonsensical, hairbrained, or bizarre: Come on, Ralph, don't be such a zany person. Be serious for a change.
3. Etymology: Giovanni (John) was for a long time a common name in Italy, and in Venice a pet name for Giovanni is Zanni.
2. Nonsensical, hairbrained, or bizarre: Come on, Ralph, don't be such a zany person. Be serious for a change.
3. Etymology: Giovanni (John) was for a long time a common name in Italy, and in Venice a pet name for Giovanni is Zanni.
Venetians must have had a lot of servants called Zanni because the name became associated with a type of clown or buffoon who played humorous servants in early Italian comedies or a commedia dell'arte.
From this clownish character, the zanni, we get the English word zany.
zucchini
